JOHN D. CIPOLLONE SR.

1923 - 2021

CIPOLLONE JOHN D., SR. Peacefully on March 25, 2021 in the care of his loving family. The cause was congestive heart failure. He was 97 and, since 2006, an active resident of Maris Grove in Glen Mills, PA. Born in Wilmington, DE, the third son of Pompilio and Adelina Di Nobile Cipollone, our dad was a self-made man. Growing up in Italian-American communities in Wilmington and Philadelphia, he was our connection to a past few remember, telling stories about Depression-era foraging for wild dandelions in Fairmount Park, playing half-ball on the streets of West Philly, and, after the repeal of Prohibition, selling roast beef sandwiches and a beer at his family's taproom, Chippy's Tavern, at 64th and Vine for a nickel, the sandwich was free. A graduate of Dimner Beeber Junior High, he left Overbrook High when he was 16, enlisted in the US Army when he was 20, and, after serving for three years, returned from Burma in 1946 as a Purple Heart decorated veteran of the China-Burma-India Campaign. Passing up the GI Bill, he went on to found John Cipollone Heating Oil in 1953, a home heating oil company in Havertown, Pa. now in its third generation of family ownership. He was also a founding board member of the Karakung Swim Club and St. Denis Family Fun Fair. But if you were to ask our dad about his greatest achievement in life, he'd tell you without a moment's hesitation that it was marrying Lena Rose Bianco, our mom, on January 24, 1948. They spent 64 years together, raising five children, building a successful business, contributing to their community, enjoying their retirement, and being loving and generous parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents to us all. Lena Cipollone passed away on December 7, 2012. We celebrate and honor our dad's approach to life – humble, helpful, faithful, frank, dependable, generous, grateful, informed. Among so much more, he taught us how to listen to baseball on the radio; the importance of telling a good story; and not to cut anything until we measured twice, a nod to his ability to build and fix almost anything. Our father is survived by his children: John D. Cipollone, Jr. and his fiancé, Brenda; Michael V. Cipollone and his wife, Gabi; Adele M. Audet; Lisa A. Detwiler and her husband, Don; Valerie J. Cipollone and her husband, Mickey; his grandchildren: Vincent Cipollone; Christopher Cipollone; Peter Cipollone; Matthias Kuhn, President, John Cipollone, Inc.; Sebastian Kuhn; Bernard Audet, Jr.; Jacqueline Rogers; Madeleine Snipes; Sarah Detwiler; Jonathan Detwiler; and Rudy Cipollone; and by his great-grandchildren: Mateo, Patricia, Alison, Christopher, and Lena. He is also survived by his nephews, John Cipollone and James Cipollone, his niece, JoAnn Soha, with whom he was very close, and many friends and admirers. Services will be private. In lieu of flowers, please honor our father by donating to the charity of your choice or acting kindly toward someone in need. www.stretchfuneralhome.com